Don't Forget Me Now
by hma1010
Summary: Kurt had cut Blaine out of his life after Blaine had admitted to cheating, however when their paths cross in an unlikely way seven years later, will Kurt be able to forgive him to help him? Will Blaine even be willing to accept his help?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey, here's a new story idea I thought of. I hope you'll like it, it will be a multi chapter, I'm think probably around 5. Let me know what you think!**

**-I own nothing from Glee!**

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Kurt rushed through the crowds, tying his scarf just a little tighter to ward off the late December air. He loved working for Vogue, and even as he thought it, he got chills down his arms because he, Kurt Hummel, worked for _VOGUE!_ And while it was a dream come true to know that he brought the latest and newest trends to fashionable people all over the country, he still hated that his office was located a mere two blocks from the Empire State Building; read: tourist trap.

Not a moment went by where he didn't have to bob and weave through groups of camera wielding sightseers, and he couldn't spare one moment of concentration on his pathway, or he'd ram right into some man or woman who decided to stop right in the middle of the sidewalk to stare up at the buildings or check the map on their phones.

He was a fast walker, an acclimated New Yorker after seven years in the city, but it always took a good three blocks before he could really start moving, before the sidewalk congestion began to clear and everyone was walking with a purpose.

Kurt also always chose to walk the few extra blocks to the 23rd street station to take the 1 train uptown so that the station was less crowded with groups and families staring up at the signs and clogging the walkways. He made the move from Brooklyn to 72nd street in the Upper West Side almost a year ago, after having been working at the magazine for two years and having saved enough to live in a neighborhood where his daily alarm clock wasn't the made from the siren of a police car. Rachel, as it turned out, was doing quite well as Christine in _The Phantom of the Opera_ on Broadway, and funnily enough, lived with her boyfriend in the West Village who just happened to be the Phantom. Kurt rolls his eyes thinking of his best friend, having heard the "hilarious" story about how she had met Greg and began dating him four months prior to them being cast as the leads together. He was happy for her, but she told this story to _everyone._

Kurt felt his phone buzz as he was walking down the stairs to the train, and frowned knowing he was about to lose service. He looked at the screen, smiling when he saw it was a text message from Scott, the digital assistant whose office was down the hall from Kurt's and who he was positive was going to ask him out at any moment. The two had been having flirty conversations all over the office, and after happy hour the previous week, when Scott and Kurt talked in a corner for two hours and ignored their co-workers, he was just waiting for the moment.

Kurt swiped his metro card as he was opening the text but suddenly his boot caught something and he was falling forward, his cellphone thrown out of his hand and across the subway's cement floor.

"Ow." Was all that came out when he finally felt able to start moving.

"Yea, well maybe you should watch where you're going then so you don't just step on people." An annoyed voice said.

Kurt looked towards what, _whom,_ he tripped on and quickly jumped up, retrieving his phone.

"I'm so sorry, I'm usually better at not walking and looking at my phone, are you ok?" He looked at the homeless man who was sitting on the floor, his hair and beard mangled, and his clothes, dirty, ripped, and too thin for the cold weather. The man was staring at his thin ankle, having pulled up the leg of his sweatpants, staring where Kurt's boot had actually left a good size indentation that was already starting to bruise, "Shit, look I'm really sorry."

"Yea, well," he was rubbing his leg, seemingly less annoyed as though this happened on occasion, "Just watch yourself next time." The man looked up and Kurt's breath was knocked out of him, he felt like he was about to faint. Staring up at him were wide with shock hazel eyes that told Kurt that he wasn't wrong about who he was looking at.

"Blaine?" His name came out in a barely there whisper, and nausea that had nothing to do with the smell coming off of his ex-boyfriend, started rolling through him.

"Kurt," Blaine looked down at his hands, "I uh…"

"What are you doing here?" He interrupted.

Blaine huffed out a miserable laugh, "Trying to sleep?"

He looked up and when he noticed that Kurt wasn't even smiling, he dropped his smile and looked down again.

Kurt stared at him, Blaine, the boy he had loved, the boy who had been his best friend, the boy he hadn't thought about since he decided to cut him out of his life after he cheated on him. Isabelle had tried to make Kurt talk to Blaine, to at least forgive him so that Kurt could move on, but it was never something that had interested him, Blaine was a cheater and there was nothing left to that story. Of course it had taken him probably twice as long to move on as it would have if he just listened to Isabelle, but eventually Kurt did move on, stopped feeling the urge to ask about Blaine every time he saw someone from back home, and eventually he convinced him self he was better off.

Looking at Blaine now, he's never felt more disgusted with himself. Sure Blaine was an idiot, and sure Kurt has no idea why Blaine is currently sleeping in a subway station, apparently homeless, but Blaine was his soul mate at one point, his first love, hell first _everything_, and he has no idea what kind of hardship this boy has gone through to end up here.

Kurt cleared his throat a little and Blaine's eye shot up to his, but then seemed to have difficulty maintaining eye contact.

"How umm…how are you?"

Blaine laughed in that same miserable way, "I've been better… god this is embarrassing," he mumbled, though Kurt caught it, "What are the odds, huh?"

"Yea…" his words fell off and Kurt realized he had no idea what to say.

Blaine rubbed the back of his neck like he had always done when he was nervous, "Well…um, you better get going, you've probably missed like five trains…I'm sure you wanna get…um, home."

Kurt stared at him for a second and knew he couldn't leave him out here, "You can come if you want."

Blaine looked up but still didn't really look into Kurt's eyes, "What?"

"Yea," He felt more confident in his decision, this wasn't just some homeless man he was taking home, this was Blaine…and jeeze that sounded strange in his head, Blaine was _homeless,_ "Yea, come with me, I'll make some dinner, you can get cleaned up, we can catch up, I have a futon with your name on it," he smiled maybe a little too brightly.

Blaine just sighed, looking down again, "I appreciate that, but no thanks."

"Oh." He stared at him for a moment, "May I ask why not?"

"Listen Kurt, it's been…what, like six years?"

"Seven." It popped out before he even made the decision to say it.

Blaine nodded, looking up, "Fine, seven years. I appreciate that you feel bad, or whatever, but you don't even know me anymore. I could be a serial killer for all you know, I'm just…no thanks." He shook his head.

Kurt stared at him for a moment, feeling the anger he felt all those years ago, hearing the, _I needed you and you weren't there _again, the blame. He felt all those feelings again and just huffed, "Fine." He said before walking away.

He got about five feet before he stopped, because he was about to punish Blaine for something that happened seven years ago, in the same way that he would have done it seven years ago. Kurt wasn't that young boy anymore, and though it was true that he didn't know Blaine anymore, he was still someone special to him. He turned around and marched back up to him.

"No."

Blaine opened his eyes, surprised; he had leaned his head against the wall and closed them when Kurt had walked away, "no?"

Kurt nodded, "Yea…no."

"No what?"

"I'm not leaving without you, Blaine."

He sighed again, as though Kurt just didn't understand what he was saying, "Please Kurt…please just go."

Kurt looked at the ground, looked at his pants, then rolled his eyes because he had already been on the floor when he fell and sat down next to Blaine, before scooting a little away because boy he stank.

"What are you doing?" Blaine's eyes were wide again.

"I told you, I'm not leaving without you."

"It's not safe here for you, Kurt." He looked down at his hands again.

"And it's safe for you?" He watched Blaine's face, saw his jaw clench slightly.

"No," He said quietly, followed by an equally quiet, "But I'm used to it."

He didn't answer for a moment, thinking over his approach, "Listen, I get that you don't want to see me, or whatever, but please, just do this one thing for me. Come to my apartment, have some food, get cleaned up, and sleep there, just tonight…I just need to know that you're ok, even just for one night."

Blaine finally looked into his eyes, and Kurt was surprised by how much he could tell Blaine had changed just by the hardness to his gaze.

"Just tonight?"

Kurt smiled a little, "Just tonight."

Blaine bit his lip and looked out ahead of him.

"Please?" Kurt pushed a little.

Another moment passed and then, "ok."

He smiled and quickly rose from the ground, wiping off his jeans as he did. Blaine gathered his things, a plastic bag of what looked like clothes and a medium sized brown box that caught Kurt's suspicion, and then looked to Kurt.

"So?"

He stared for a minute then realization that Blaine had no idea where they were going hit him, "Oh!" He jumped and turned in a full circle out of nervousness, "Right, ok, we're taking the 1 uptown."

"You're sure about this?" He asked before Kurt could begin to lead them.

"Positive." He smiled.

The two boys walked, making quite the pair, one in all designer clothes, groomed to the tee, the other dressed in layered hand me downs that still allowed the cold air to seep into his bones and obviously past due for a bath.

Kurt smiled when Blaine closed his eyes once they entered the warmth of the train, he had been able to see his small frame shaking from the cold. As they his what must have been a station with Wi-Fi, Kurt felt his forgotten phone vibrate in his pocket, however with Blaine sitting next to him, he couldn't be bothered to check it.

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**Let me know if you liked it and if I should continue!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi all, I appreciate all of the favorites and follows! I'm hoping that after this chapter, when there's a little more story, that you will all comment to tell me what you think!**

**-I don't own anything from Glee!**

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After the initial excitement of being next to Blaine again after seven years, the awkwardness of the situation had hit Kurt like a ton of bricks. What did they have to talk about? Was it too soon to ask him a million questions? The how's, why's, and seriously, what the hell's of finding Blaine on the streets?

They stood side by side for the fifteen-minute train ride in near silence, stealing glances at each other and smiling when they were caught looking. The train was packed with rush hour commuters, and Kurt's stomach twisted every time he noticed a passenger eye Blaine and wrinkle their noses when they were squeezed in too close to him. Blaine had to have noticed as well, Kurt guessed, because though he had his head down for the most part, his cheeks were red and he seemed to be both trying to stand closer to Kurt so that he was not so close to the other passengers and then farther from him, so that he could spare his ex-boyfriend.

When Kurt realized that that was what Blaine was doing, he stood a little closer to to him and whispered, "only a couple more stops."

Blaine smiled in what was more of a grimace and nodded his head before looking down.

Kurt had never been gladder to be at a stop than when the train pulled into the 72nd street station. The boys quickly made their way up the stairs and to street level, before Kurt led Blaine up the block towards his apartment.

"This is a nice area." Blaine said looking around, noticing the storefronts and the fact that Kurt was only a couple blocks from Central Park.

Kurt looked around too, "Yea, I was really lucky to find a place up here, to be honest. It was kind of just right timing that I was looking and these people were moving out," He saw Blaine looking at the different food places, "Umm…I have turkey chili that I've been cooking in my crock pot, it should be done soon, but I mean I wasn't expecting company so it's nothing fancy…we can get something else if you want?" He looked almost anxiously at Blaine, whose eyes were staring into his.

"No, that sounds good."

Kurt stopped them in front of his building, "Are you sure? Because I mean we can go anywhere, and you look like you haven't eaten in a while, so maybe you'll want something different? We can always—"

He paused when Blaine reached out and touched his should, smiling a little, "I forgot how much you ramble when you're nervous."

Kurt laughed a little, looking down as his cheeks tinged pink, "Sorry."

Blaine squeezed his shoulder before dropping his hand, "Listen, Kurt, I know you invited me here and all, but please don't feel like you can't change your mind or whatever," He rubbed at his neck nervously, "I know this is awkward, and I really, really appreciate that you even asked so it's not a big deal…." He let his words fall off without continuing.

"No!" Kurt said much louder than he intended, causing Blaine's eyebrows to shoot up and a smile to pull at his lips again, "I mean…I mean I want you to come up and everything, I just don't know how to do this right or…I don't know, but I do want you to come up."

Blaine looked into his eyes for a moment, looking for something, and when it seemed like he found the answer, he said, "Turkey chili sounds great."

"You're sure? I'm serious, we could get something else, something on this block or down Columbus Avenue there are a thousand restaurants that—"

"Kurt." Blaine actually laughed this time and Kurt joined him after snapping his mouth shut.

"Sorry, sorry, I know."

"Like you said, I haven't eaten much lately, and nothing good. Anything would be great right now, and I particularly remember you making turkey chili once and it being probably the best thing I've ever eaten."

Kurt blushed again, but didn't look away, "Ok…well I hope you've been doing your cardio."

Blaine looked at him confused, but Kurt just turned around and unlocked the front door, then another door, and then led Blaine in the building.

By the time the boys walked up to the fourth floor, which was actually the fifth floor, Blaine understood what Kurt meant. He may be homeless and constantly on the move, but that didn't mean that his lungs weren't burning and he wasn't out of breath. Kurt laughed a little when he noticed that Blaine was huffing for air.

"It took me two months to get used to those stairs."

"I think it would take me two years."

Kurt laughed and unlocked the door and led Blaine into his apartment, "So it's not huge, and I haven't had time to tidy since obviously I didn't know I'd run in to you, literally, but," He walked them into the main room and turned to face Blaine, "This is it."

Blaine looked around at what was undoubtedly Kurt's home. Though the apartment was a studio, there was a bookshelf like cabinet that provided some privacy from what was the living room to the area where Kurt's bed was. There were little touches of Kurt everywhere, and although everything was clean, nothing needed tidying, not that Blaine was surprised, the apartment was somehow both masculine and fashion mixed together with little Broadway accents.

"Wow, Kurt…" He looked to the boy who was watching him take in the apartment nervously, as though he was waiting for Blaine to condemn it and walk out, "This is perfect…I love it."

"Thanks, I uhh….I'm pretty proud of how it turned out."

Blaine smiled, "You should be, it's great."

They stared at each other for a few moments, before Blaine looked away to sneeze and Kurt was brought back into the moment.

"Ok…well, I was thinking that you could shower while I get dinner finished and served, and then after we eat I could cut your hair and beard because I honestly can't deal with it."

Blaine's eyebrows shot up in surprise and then he just laughed, his laughs turning into a cough, but he quickly took a breath and stopped them, "Sorry, I just…what?"

Kurt crossed his arms, "Look, I know that I have no right to say anything about how you wear your," he waved an outstretch palm and Blaine's face, "Hair," he settled on, "But this look Blaine, screams 'I have lice.'"

"And what if I do have lice, Kurt?"

"All the more reason to cut it off."

Blaine rubbed at his beard for a moment, "You can cut my hair, it's been a while anyway, but it's winter, the beard keeps my face warm. And I like it."

Kurt rolled his eyes, "Fine I'll just trim it then…for christ's sakes you look homeless!" He slapped a hand over his mouth, his eyes wide, "I'm so sorry, Blaine, I didn't mean…I just meant."

He just shook his head a little, "It's ok, really. You can trim the beard a little." He smiled a little to show Kurt he wasn't angry, "So where is this shower I was promised?" He looked around a little then back at Kurt when he didn't answer or move, Blaine lifted an eyebrow at him.

"Right, ok, follow me."

Kurt set Blaine up in the bathroom with a towel, a change of clothes, and directions that he'd have to turn the water on hot and wait about ten minutes before anything resembling hot water came out of the faucet. Kurt also promised Blaine that when he came out, he would wash his clothes so that tomorrow he could put clean clothes on.

When Kurt exited the bathroom, the only sound coming from the bathroom that he could hear being the water running and the whirring of the fan, he leaned against the wall for a moment and closed his eyes, damning himself for telling his homeless ex-boyfriend that he looked homeless. Even with the clothes, and the hair, and the smell, it was easy to forget that they were different people, practically strangers.

Kurt stayed there for another moment, before walking across the hallway to his closet, which was jammed packed with clothes. He knew that dinner would only take about five minutes to prepare and that Blaine would be waiting for the hot water for at least another five, so he had some time.

It was almost thirty minutes later when the bathroom door opened and steam mixed with the scent of Kurt's body wash and shampoo engulfed the apartment.

When Blaine came into view, he was dressed in the sweatpants and t-shirt Kurt had given him and he was carrying his dirty clothes with the box he had with him on top.

"Well now that I smell awesome," He smiled at Kurt, "I see why everyone always looked at me like something died."

Kurt laughed, "Yea, it wasn't great." He walked over with a bag for Blaine to put the clothes into, "We'll deal with that after we eat. You can just sit on the couch, I don't have a table, so I usually just sit there, sorry."

Blaine put the bag by the front door and walked over to the couch, which was actually a futon, "Please don't apologize, this is seriously great." When he sat, he eyed a pile of clothes on a chair across the room that hadn't been there before, "Are you doing laundry too?"

"What?" He asked as he brought a tray over, placing it on the footrest that also acted as a table. Blaine nodded his head over to the clothes as he accepted a large bowl from Kurt with chili in it, "Oh, that, no." He took a bite of the food and looked at Blaine guiltily before looking away.

"Ok?"

"It's just…I saw how thin your clothes were and it's really cold out there."

Blaine nodded slowly, "Yea, and?"

Kurt looked down at his food and mumbled, "And I went through my closet and those are clothes for you."

When Blaine didn't say anything, Kurt looked at him worried. Blaine was staring down at the chili, the cheese just beginning to melt. He sighed a little and placed the bowl on the tray again before looking at Kurt.

"Look, Kurt, I appreciate that, I really do. I appreciate everything you've done for me here, ok? But I'm not…I'm not your charity case here, ok? I don't need you to take care of me or feel bad for me…I know I'm a mess, but I've been taking care of myself for a long time here, I don't need all of this." He looked away from Kurt when he finished, staring down at his hands.

Kurt thought for a moment before reaching for his hand, happy to feel Blaine squeeze back a little and not pull it away, "I know you don't. I see that you've taken care of yourself, and I find it amazing because honestly I couldn't last on those streets for a day in summer, never mind however long you've been out there, but Blaine, of course I feel bad. I might not know you now, but I still care about you, I still care if you're ok or not, and maybe I didn't do a good enough job of caring before, but I was stupid and angry, and I do…I really, really care, and those clothes are just…idk, you don't even have to wear them, I just want to give you the option I guess." He squeezed his hand a little and pulled away.

"Thank you," He said quietly and smiled again, he didn't agree on taking the clothes, but it was obvious that he appreciated the gesture.

They ate their dinner quietly, but only after Blaine told Kurt that it was the best food he'd had in years over and over again, and after Kurt took Blaine's clothes and brought them to the basement laundry room to wash. While they waited for the clothes to be finished, Blaine allowed Kurt to cut his hair and trim his beard back to an acceptable length, "Now you look less homeless and more hipster!" Kurt exclaimed, Blaine only snorting in reply.

After the laundry was finished and folded, not so subtly sitting on top of the rest of the clothes Kurt had out for Blaine, the boys watched HGTV and commented on the stupidity of the first time buyers, and things were beginning to feel like they had in the past. During a commercial break, Kurt eyed Blaine's box, which was sitting on the counter, "What's in there?" He asked and nodded his head towards it when Blaine raised an eyebrow in question.

"Oh," Blaine was quiet, seemingly trying to figure out what to say.

"I'm sorry, you don't have to tell me."

"No, it's just…um, some stuff that I have from before. Some things I've been able to hold on to. Nothing important."

Kurt nodded and decided not to press any further.

By 10 pm both boys were yawning and ready for bed. Kurt made up the futon for Blaine, but not after telling him at least five times that he could sleep in Kurt's bed and Kurt would sleep on the futon. And after a hug Kurt initiated that felt just a little bit like home to both of them, the boys went to bed.

Blaine seemed to pass out immediately, the comfort of sleeping inside where there was heat and on something with more cushion than a cardboard box, lulling him to bed. Kurt on the other hand tossed and turned for a few hours, trying to figure out how he could convince Blaine to stay with him, and how he could help Blaine get back on his feet. He knew he wouldn't take it well, so as 1 am glared at him from his phone, Kurt decided that he'd at least convince him to stay another day, long enough that he could talk to his father for advice.

Listening to Blaine airy snores, Kurt fell asleep dreaming of Hazel eyes and second chances.

Oh Honey's "Be Okay" jolted Kurt awake, and Kurt quickly hit snooze on his alarm, cursing that it was only Wednesday. He was about to fall asleep again for the five minutes he had until the next round of music came on, when the previous evening came back to him. He quickly shot up and turned the alarm off, quietly extracting himself from the bed to make some coffee and create a plan for how to get Blaine to stay for at least that day.

The pile of clothes was the first give away that something was off. The clothes Kurt had washed, as well as a heavy scarf and sweater that Kurt had laid out on top were gone, and when he looked to the futon, the blankets were folded and a note was laying on top.

Kurt felt his hands begin to shake as he walked towards the couch, noting that there was no noise coming from the bathroom.

_Kurt,_

_I can never tell you how much I appreciate what you did for me last night. Please don't be angry, I knew you would try and make me stay and I just can't do that to you, I can't be your burden. Thank you for the scarf and sweater, I wouldn't have taken them, but I looked out the window and it's started to snow, so thank you again. I can never repay you for what you've done for me, not only physically in feeding me and giving me a place to sleep for the night, but just in reminding me again that people can be good. I wish you the best life; you've become an amazing man that I wish I could've known._

_Thank you again,_

_Blaine_

And just like that, he was gone.

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**Please review, the next chapter will be up soon!**


	3. Chapter 3

**I intended to leave this story unfinished because it didn't seem to interest many people, however I couldn't seem to get the idea out of my head, so I planned the rest of the chapters out. I hope those of you who are reading it do enjoy! Please let me know if you do!**

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Kurt's commute to work was a blur. The only points he vividly remembered were the faces of the homeless men and women who he passed on his way. At one point, he even walked up to a man because he had wild hair that resembled Blaine's. Of course it wasn't him, and after giving the man five dollars because he had no singles and couldn't very well leave without offering him some kind of support, he continued on to the Vogue office after getting a coffee to make up for the little sleep he was able to get the night before. He almost wanted to laugh because he stayed up half the night planning on how to keep Blaine there, which caused him to fall in such a deep sleep that he didn't hear said boy while he was folding the blankets, getting dressed, or writing the note.

When Kurt reached his office, he sat at his desk and sighed. After checking to make sure there weren't any urgent phone calls or e-mails, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the note Blaine had written. He stared at it, hoping that in the hours since he had first seen it (and subsequently read and reread it), that it would hold the answer to where Blaine could be found. Turning to the left, he looked out his office window and stared down at the thousands of people walking below, some trying to get to work, others with maps leading them on their adventures. An older man sitting against a building caught Kurt's attention. He was clearly homeless, a cardboard sign Kurt couldn't read sitting next to a cup accompanied him as he looked at passerby's.

It saddened Kurt to notice that people walked passed the man without a second glance. People went about their day, and this man was just part of the scenery to so many. It angered him to know that he was one of those people, and the really sad part was that he hadn't even noticed, hadn't cared, until he literally fell over one and had no choice but to take notice. Kurt wondered if he would have even stopped to chat with the person if it didn't turn out to be Blaine; probably not.

"Well someone is lost in thought."

The voice startled Kurt, pulling him out of his thoughts. He looked to the door to see Scott smiling at him, "Everything ok? You seemed to be gone for a minute there."

Kurt smiled a little, "Yea, I'm fine. Just thinking." He turned to face Scott, "How are you?"

"I'm great, I was a little worried when I hadn't heard from you last night. These streets can be dangerous you know."

"Oh…yea I'm sorry about that, I ran into an old friend unexpectedly and I guess I just forgot to get back to you."

"No problem, was it a good run in or a bad one? You look like you've seen a ghost." He laughed.

Kurt laughed too, "It was someone I hadn't seen in seven years, so you're not far off…it was good, just—yea, unexpected."

Scott nodded a little, but when he realized Kurt wasn't going to give him any more he spoke again, "Well, I better get to work, but I was going to go to Monty's, you know that specialty sandwich shop on 28th? I wanted to see if you wanted to come?"

Had Kurt been more present in the conversation, his heart would have begun to race because that sounded an awful lot like a date. However, he was still far into his thoughts and so he didn't seem to notice, "Oh, thanks but I actually planned on getting together with Rachel, you know my friend from high school?" He didn't notice the disappointment on Scott's face, "Next time though." He smiled but was clearly distracted.

"Definitely, see you later then." Scott smiled a little and waved as he walked away and down the hall.

Kurt had already texted Rachel a 911 with a _we need to meet_ as he was leaving his apartment, and she had quickly agreed to come by later in the day after Kurt reassured her that he was safe and that no, he had not slept with Scott.

Kurt walked out of his office and asked his assistant to hold his calls before walking back in and closing the door behind him. He looked at the clock, and though it was early and Lima was an hour behind New York, he knew his father would already be awake and at the shop.

The phone rang twice before Burt's gruff voice rang through the receiver, "Hummel Tire and Lube, this is Burt."

"Hey dad."

"Kurt, I don't usually hear from you this early, how're things kid?"

"Good, they're good. I was hoping you'd have a few minutes to talk?"

"Sure, just give me a minute to move to my office so we can talk, ok?"

"Of course."

Kurt waited as he was put on hold, a few moments later his dad was back on the line.

"You're sure everything is ok?"

"Yea, no things are fine…"

"Well something's up, I know that much."

Kurt hesitated for a moment then blurted out, "I saw Blaine."

"Oh," Burt paused, "Wow, ok, how was that?"

"It was…it was a little awkward to be honest."

"It's been a while."

"Seven years."

"So what's he up to then? Or did you just see but not talk to him?"

"No we talked…" He paused.

"I'm not getting where you're headed with this, kid. You can talk in rhymes or you can just tell me what happened."

"He's homeless, dad."

Kurt waited for his dad to reply, but when no response came through he pulled the phone from his ear to make sure the call hadn't been dropped, "Dad?"

"What do you mean he's homeless?"

"I mean he sleeps on the streets and has no home…homeless." Kurt then proceeded to tell his father about the night with Blaine, from tripping over him to the note he found this morning.

"Wow, I don't really know what to say."

"I know; I still feel like it's a dream or a joke…something. It just doesn't make any sense. When was the last time you saw him?"

"I don't know, it had to have been right before he left for New York."

Kurt was surprised, "You didn't tell me he was going to New York…or that you talked to him at all."

"Well kid, at that time you had just started dating Adam for real and any mention of Blaine sent you on a tailspin. I didn't even think about it, it wasn't really a big deal."

"What happened?"

"He just came to the shop, told me he had gotten into NYU and was headed there at the end of the summer, a few weeks later. He said he just felt the need to tell me. I tried to convince him to look you up, not then but in the future, told him I thought you'd eventually want to get back in touch, but he said something like 'Kurt's going to have a great life in New York, he doesn't need the past interfering,' something like that, and then he was shaking my hand and telling me he'd see me around some time."

"And you hadn't heard from him again? Or about him from the other kids from McKinley, the Glee club?"

"To be honest, after Finn passed, there really wasn't a connection to that school or that club anymore. Plus things at the shop got busy, life happened I guess, but no, I hadn't heard from or about him since."

Kurt sighed, "I just don't know what to do."

"It doesn't sound like there's much _to do_, Kurt."

"I can't just move on knowing Blaine is out there somewhere on the streets."

"If Blaine doesn't want to be found, and that's what it sounds like from that note, there's not a whole lot you can do to change that besides hope you run into him again. Maybe try to contact his family? That's probably the only thing you can really try, but I don't know if that will really help. If Blaine's homeless it sounds like his parents won't be much of a help even wanting to find him."

"That's a good idea, though…Worth a try, anyway. Thanks dad."

"Anytime, kiddo."

"I'm going to go, but send my love to Carole, ok?"

"Will do. Good luck, and if you find him again, talk some sense into that boy, you were the only one he ever listened to anyway. And let me know what happens."

He agreed and hung up after saying goodbye.

Kurt looked through his phone, he still had the same contacts from high school, lucky that transferring numbers was not a manual job because then he definitely would have rid himself of the Andersons' numbers. He knew that there was a possibility that their numbers could have changed, but figured it would be worth the try.

He tried the home number first:

"_Hi, you've reached the office of Smith, Michaelson, and Michaelson; attornies at—"_

One down. Mrs. Anderson's cell was next:

"_The phone number you've dialed is not in service, please hand up and—"_

Kurt sighed, trying Mr. Anderson:

"_Hello?" A deep voice answered._

"_Hi, I'm looking for Jack Anderson."_

"_Sorry, you've got the wrong number."_

Frustration rolled through Kurt, wondering how it was that they had changed all three numbers. He stared down at the final one, Cooper Anderson, and felt like it was a little useless. If anyone would change his number, it would be a budding actor; nonetheless, Kurt pressed his name and listened as it rang:

"Hello?" A distracted voice answered, a distracted voice that definitely belonged to Cooper Anderson.

"Cooper?"

"Yep, that's me, who is this?"

"Oh, um….this is Kurt…Hummel."

There was a pregnant pause, then, "Wow…Kurt, it's been a while."

"Yea…" Kurt suddenly realized he had no idea how this conversation was supposed to go.

"So, umm, what can I do for you?"

"I just…I saw Blaine yesterday and I was, I guess, wondering when the last time you'd seen him was."

Another pause and then Cooper replied, "It's been a while, probably about five or six years. We lost contact after the funeral, and then one day I tried to call him and his number was disconnected."

"The funeral?"

"Yea, that was the last time I saw him and then I had gotten busy. I figured that he was pissed at me for not really being there for him, but then the silence just kept extending. I guessed he just went on with his life and would get back to me when he was less angry. Is he still pissed? Cause I mean I get that I was really busy, but he has to understand that I was coping by throwing myself into my work, we can't all be big talkers like Blaine."

"He…who's funeral?"

"What?"

"Whose funeral are you talking about when you said that was the last time you saw him?"

"Our parents…didn't he tell you?"

"Wow…no."

"Our parents were in a car accident, they were on their way to visit Blaine in New York actually, it was about six months after he started school there. He didn't tell you that?"

"He didn't."

"Maybe we should start from the beginning, why are you calling about Blaine, Kurt?"

And so he told him; he told Cooper the same story he told his dad.

"I don't understand how that's possible…why he wouldn't have just, I don't know, called me or something."

"I don't know, and now I don't know where he is."

"I've just been here thinking he was angry...that I was giving him space…"

"I know."

"I am the worst brother ever. God, our parents died and I basically left him alone to survive."

"Cooper, we both know that that's not true; you said it yourself, he disappeared without a trace. Could you have been more present after their deaths? Sure, but Blaine, like you said, could have reached out to you as well. The important thing is that we find him and help him now."

Kurt hung up with Cooper after promising that he'd be in touch. He had to convince him not to fly out to New York, reminding him that there was nothing he could do at the moment, but that once both men had time to think and plan, they could discuss options.

After the conversation, Kurt tried to do work, he did, but by the time lunch rolled around and he was set to meet up with Rachel, he hadn't gotten much done. Rachel had been devastated to hear about Blaine. They had always shared a special bond, but when the time came to pick sides, Rachel was obviously on Kurt's, fresh off of a break up with Finn herself.

As the lunch progressed, Kurt found himself consoling Rachel who cried that she was responsible in her own way because she cut him out of her life even though he never did anything to her.

"We're all responsible, Rachel. Now we just need to figure this out, come up with a plan."

Rachel sniffed a little, "What if we put up signs around the city with his picture?"

Kurt rolled his eyes, "He's not a lost puppy Rachel, he's not even technically lost. Plus he looks completely different than the picture's we'd have from high school. No, my dad is right, if he doesn't want to be found, he's not going to be. We just have to keep our eyes open, be vigilant in looking for him."

"I just can't even imagine how he lives out there," She looked out the café's window, "And it's so cold."

Kurt's eyes turned sad, "I know, you should've seen him, he was so thin and the clothes he had were battered and barely protecting him from this weather."

He looked down when Rachel put her hand over his, "We'll find him, Kurt."

He met her eyes, "I hope so."


	4. Chapter 4

**Hi all! Thank you for all the reviews and follows for the last chapter, it was nice to hear that you were enjoying the story. This was going to be two chapters, but I couldn't really see if splitting up because the first chapter would have been weird a short, so it took a bit of time to write it as one, I apologize for that!**

**I hope you'll let me know what you thought of this one!**

**-I own nothing from Glee**

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Three weeks after Blaine disappeared, Kurt finds himself swamped at work. With January looming, the Valentine's Day issue is soon to hit the press, and with so many workers out with the flu that's been rampant this winter, those left are struggling to get things finished.

"Hey you."

Kurt looks up from the article he's reviewing to see Scott, then looks back down to his computer, "Hey, give me one minute to finish this." He quickly looks through the final paragraph, types out a short response to the changes that need to be made, then saves it and sighs, looking back up smiling slightly, "Hey, what's up?

"Stressed?"

He laughs a little, "You could say that."

"You guys short handed here too?" He gives Kurt a knowing look.

"Yes! And it's so annoying because even three of the interns are out right now, and what was the _first_ thing I mentioned at the _first_ staff meeting in September? Get the freaking flu shot! It's not that hard." He rolled his eyes.

"Wow…seems like maybe someone needs a fun night out."

Kurt began organizing the papers and the various other things on his desk, "I can't even comprehend what those words mean at this point."

"That bad?"

Kurt looked at him and deadpanned, "I asked Meaghan for a write up on scarves, and she sent me one where they were all black, green, and grey….it's a spread for _Valentine's Day_!" He threw his hands up.

Scott laughed, "Ok, that's it, you do need some time off…what do you say we grab dinner after work? We'll go somewhere nice, drink some wine, talk about everything except work."

His eyebrows raised in surprised, "Like…a date?"

"Yessss, like a date…now what do you say?"

Kurt looked down at the hundreds of things he had to get done, his cheeks blushing, but just smiled and met Scott's green eyes, "Yea…that sounds great."

Scott fist pumped in the air a little, "Great! Ok…I'll see you at fiv…six?" He changed the time when Kurt looked at him like he was crazy.

"Six should be perfect."

After another shared smile, Scott said goodbye and left the room.

After that, all the work Kurt had didn't seem so daunting and he couldn't keep the grin off his face if he tried.

Four hours later and Kurt found himself internally squealing. He had his arm wrapped around Scott's as he walked Kurt back to his apartment after a pretty much perfect dinner. He was feeling light and giddy as he listened to Scott talk about the Beyonce and Jay Z tour that was coming to the city.

"It's going to be absolutely amazing…I can't wait to go."

"I just can't believe you have tickets! I went on the website the moment they went on sale, and besides a frozen computer, I have nothing to show for it." He smiled and then looked up the block as they were approaching his apartment. He squinted a little, trying to see better, when he noticed someone was sitting outside his building.

"Well what can I say? I'm lucky!" He laughed, "Actually, my sister had to cancel on me, something about her husband planning some trip, so I wanted to know if—"

"Oh my god!"

"Kurt?" Scott yelled as he took off towards the man sitting against the wall outside his building, knees pulled up tight and face buried in his legs and arms. Kurt wouldn't have really given him much thought, except that scarf…that was his old maroon Alexander McQueen scarf from two years ago…it was the one that was missing from the top of the pile of clothing he left for…

"Blaine?" He asked softly as he knelt down in front of the man, the cold from the concrete already flooding through his jeans. He held out his hand, ready to touch his shoulder when his shoulder was grabbed instead. He looked up into Scott's wide eyes.

"Kurt, what are you doing?"

He looked down again when the man began coughing in a way that sounded to be painful. He reached his hand out and rubbed his shoulder a little, when his shoulders stopped shaking he squeezed until, as he assumed, Blaine lifted his head.

"Oh god…Blaine, what happened?"

"Kurt?" He rasped out, his voice horse.

"You're freezing, what are you doing out here?"

Suddenly, Blaine's eyes began to water, "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry…"He began to cry, his voice cracking on every other word and barely there, "I didn't know where to go…I didn't know."

Kurt pulled him into his chest, his heart dropping both by how cold he was and by hot his forehead was when it pressed against his neck. He pulled back and looked at his face again, and pulled his hand from his glove, holding it to Blaine's forehead, "You're burning up, we have to get you inside."

"Kurt, what are you doing?" Scott's voice was low, almost like he thought Blaine wouldn't hear him.

He looked up, "This is the friend I told you about a few weeks ago. The one I said I hadn't seen in a while."

"_This _is him?" He looked almost disgusted.

Kurt narrowed his eyes, but when Blaine began coughing again, he immediately looked back at him and began rubbing his back.

"Shh, it's ok. You'll be ok, we'll get you inside, get you warmed up, and some medicine in you. You'll be ok."

When Blaine stopped coughing, Kurt spoke again, "Do you think you can walk?"

"You don't have to, I'm sorry." He was sniffling.

Kurt rolled his eyes and dug his keys out of his pocket, handing the correct one to Scott, "Can you open the door and help me get him upstairs?"

"Oh…uh, sure?" He said, making it sound more like a question.

Kurt helped Blaine stand, practically dragging him off the ground, and after struggling up the fist flight of stairs, decided it would be easier to just carry him. He was surprised to find that Blaine was much lighter than he appeared, even with the bag of clothes that he held.

When they finally entered Kurt's apartment, Scott holding the door open so that they could get through the entrance, Kurt brought Blaine directly into the bathroom and sat him on the closed toilet seat. He was happy that the apartment was generally warm in the winter, sometimes to the point of stuffy, which was perfect in this situation, as even though Blaine was burning up, he was still freezing from the air outside. Kurt turned on the hot water to the bath to let it start heating up, and then turned back to Blaine, taking off his hat and scarf, both wet, whether from the snow earlier that day or from Blaine sweating through his fever he wasn't sure. He threw them into the hall next to Scott's feet to begin a pile. Scott, for his part, said nothing as he watched.

Next to come off, was Blaine's jacket. Once it was removed, Blaine's shivering seemed to pick up, his teeth chattering.

"I know, I'm sorry, but you'll be warm soon."

Blaine only coughed in response, his eye squeezed shut, and it sounded like his lungs were going to come up soon. Kurt was sure that Blaine would need to go to the doctor tomorrow, it sounded like he could have bronchitis, but for now, he would just try and make him warm and comfortable.

He turned back to the medicine cabinet and quickly found a thermometer, easing it into Blaine's mouth. As he waited, he left the bathroom and went to the closet to find two towels for Blaine, one for before the bath and one for after, and then walked further into his apartment to find warm clothes for after.

"What are you doing?" He jumped a little when Scott spoke and he turned to find him much closer than Kurt had thought he was.

"What do you mean?" He asked, pulling out warm fleece pants, a clean pair of boxers, and a long sleeved t-shirt.

"You can't just bring homeless men into your apartment…" Kurt looked at him with a raised eyebrow, "He could be crazy, Kurt! He could be dangerous!"

He stopped walking back towards the bathroom and turned to him, "Listen, this isn't just a random person…I know Blaine, have known him since high school. He's not crazy and he's not dangerous….he's just having a hard time." Kurt shrugged a little and turned around again, but Scott's arm on his stopped him.

"I don't think it's a good idea."

Kurt's clenched his jaw a little, "I wasn't asking."

He continued back to the bathroom, heedless as to whether Scott followed him or not, where he found Blaine, still shivering where he sat, the water finally beginning to steam. He put the clothes on top of the sink, the towels on the floor next to where he kneeled. Kurt gently eased the thermometer out of Blaine's mouth and winced at the 101.2 glaring at him in green. He worked on moving the water nozzle until the temperature was warm but not hot, and put in the drain stopper. He then stood back up and gently helped Blaine stand.

"I'm going to get you out of these clothes, ok?" He asked gently, rubbing his hands up and down Blaine's arms to try and stop the shivers running through his body.

"I'm sorry." He whispered.

Kurt's heart broke a little at the words, "Blaine, there is nothing to be sorry for, ok?" He looked into his fever bright eyes and noticed how sad they looked, "They're just all wet and they're just going to make you sicker. I'll wash and dry them after you're situated and I've got some warm pajamas for you to put on after the bath, ok?" He nodded his head towards the clothes on the sink.

"Ok." His voice was still low and Kurt guessed it was probably less painful for him to talk quietly any way.

He gently unbuttoned the top shirt before easing it down Blaine arms and throwing it into the hall, his second shirt and a final t-shirt, all soaked through, joined that one, and Kurt had to hold in a gasped when he saw Blaine's chest. The ease in which Kurt was able to pick him up, or the fact that Blaine was properly skinny even with so many layers on should have better prepared him, but somehow he was still not expecting to see so many of the bones of Blaine's chest cavity protruding from his skin. It made Blaine's coughing worse, because he felt like he could almost see his lungs trying to expand, like his ribs may crack from the force of the coughs rattling through him.

When Kurt reached for Blaine's jeans, Scott spoke up.

"I think maybe I should go." He looked seriously concerned, looking between Kurt, Blaine, and Kurt's hands on Blaine's pants, before back to Kurt.

He had to stop himself from saying something biting back. This _was_ weird, from anyone outside of those who knew them back when they were _KurtandBlaine_, this was beyond weird.

He nodded, "I'll talk to you tomorrow?"

Scott smiled a little, but it didn't reach his eyes, "Sure."

He was gone quickly and Kurt knew that it was over. He was surprised by how little it really hurt, but when Blaine began coughing again and he saw the pain in his face, he was drawn back into the task at hand.

He rubbed Blaine's back, feeling more bones than he would have liked, before leaning down to shut the water of the tub off. Moving back to Blaine, he made quick work of undoing and ridding Blaine of his jeans and the jogging pants he had on under them. When Blaine was left in just his boxers, Kurt grabbed one of the towels off of the floor, and began drying his hair and body, not wanted him to get sicker by jumping into the warm water while he was still freezing.

When he got to his legs, Kurt looked into his eyes, "I don't mind doing this for you, but you can do it yourself if you want? I can go."

Blaine shook his head a little, said sadly "It's ok…it's no more embarrassing than any of this is anyway."

"What's embarrassing about the rest of it?"

He just shook his head, "Can we—" He was cut off by more coughing, "Can we talk later?"

He looked him over, noticed the Goosebumps now covering his skin. He smiled a little, one that was barely returned, and then made quick work of getting Blaine's boxers off and drying him off the rest of the way. He threw the towel out into the hall with the rest of the clothes, and helped Blaine get into the water. When the warm water covered him, he sighed.

Kurt smiled, then grabbed a washcloth and body wash, running it over Blaine's skin. Once his body and hair were clean, Kurt turned the tap on once again, and let out the cooling water, replacing it with more warmth. He made sure that Blaine was comfortable, before telling him he was going to throw all of his clothes in the wash, leaving only after Blaine reassured him multiple times that he would be ok alone for ten minutes.

He grabbed his laundry detergent and quarters, then Blaine's bag and the clothes off the floor and went down to the basement. After finding two empty machines, he began to sort the clothes from darks and lights. He dumped Blaine's bag out, and startled slightly when the box he had carried with him last time fell out, the contents spilling from inside. Kurt stared for a moment, before kneeling down to clean up the mess.

When the box was turned right side up, Kurt began to pick up the items that had fallen out. He stared down sadly at the picture of Blaine's family, and realized that he'll have to call Cooper…that he'll have to talk to Blaine about Cooper, but figures that it can wait until Blaine is feeling better. His heart squeezes when he flips over another picture, one this time of him and Blaine from the summer before his senior year. They're both smiling at the camera, Blaine's head tilted and resting on his shoulder, he remembers how much Blaine had loved it, recalls it being in his locker at some point. There's the keychain that Blaine had bought when they were in Chicago for nationals, all the names of the competing show choirs listed on one side, the other announcing it as the _2013 National Show Choir Competition_. He smiles a little. The final item both confuses and deeply saddens Kurt. It's a navy bowtie with little red polka dots. He doesn't know why Blaine would have this with him in this small pile of treasures. He had given it to him for his birthday, mailed it a week after he had left for New York. It feels, somehow, like this is a cruel reminder of what Blaine lost, first with Kurt and then within himself. Wearing bowties _was _Blaine. It was the most identifiable piece of him and such a big part of how he presented himself to others, and with his life now, there was not bowtie in sight. This was the last piece of that identity he had. The last real tangible thing from his life _before._

Kurt placed it back into the box, and willed himself to pretend he never saw it. Placing it on a table in the laundry room, he quickly got back to sorting the clothes, and then placed them in their respective washing machines. He then quickly made his way back upstairs, placing the box on the futon, before checking in with Blaine again, who appeared to be on the cusp of sleep.

"What do you say we get you to bed?"

His eyes lulled opened and he blinked tiredly up at Kurt.

"Ok."

He allowed Kurt to basically manhandle him out of the bathtub, and then dry and dress him, minus the shirt. Kurt sat him on the toilet seat once he was done, and took his temperature again. When the number came back as 101.8, he gave Blaine some cold medicine with a fever reducer and rubbed vapo rub against his chest to help with the congestion. After he washed his hands, he put the long sleeved t-shirt on Blaine and walked him into the main room, tucking him into the bed. Blaine was lightly snoring within a few minutes, and Kurt just placed a bottle of water next to the bed in case we woke up.

He went about draining and rinsing the tub, and then finished drying and folding Blaine's clothes from the laundry. He made quick work of showering and moisturizing his face, before turning off the lights in the apartment and crawling into the other side of the bed. He figured it would be more comfortable for Blaine to sleep in the bed than on the futon, and he didn't want to be far if he needed anything during the night.

Kurt turned so that he was facing Blaine's back, and gently placed his hand against it. With every breath, Kurt could feel the rattling of Blaine's chest with the congestion. He winced each time Blaine coughed because it sounded so painful. Eventually, Kurt was able to be lulled into sleep, and at some point, Kurt seemed subconsciously unable to keep away from the sleeping boy, as time eventually found him wrapping Blaine up from behind.

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**Next chapter will be up soon, and we'll get to see how Blaine ended up on the streets!**


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